This past weekend, the Bettingers made a flying trip out to St. Louis. On Pentecost, our good friend, former coworker and Peet’s godfather Kevin Stephens was ordained a priest of the Order of Friars Preachers (Ordo Praedicatorum) a.k.a. the Dominicans. Readers might have noticed many recent Dominican reference on this blog.

The Dominicans were founded in the 13th Century by St. Dominic Guzman. Their mission is expressed in their motto Laudare, Benedicere, Praedicare, meaning “To praise, to bless and to preach.” As Wikipedia says, “Their identification as Dominicans gave rise to the pun that they were the Domini canes, or Hounds of the Lord. The reference to “hounds” draws on the tradition that St. Dominic’s mother, while pregnant with him, had a vision of a black and white dog with a torch in its mouth; wherever the dog went, it set fire to the earth. It was explained that the vision was fulfilled when Dominic and his followers went forth, clad in black and white, setting fire to the earth with the Gospel.”

This was our first ordination, and we were struck by the solemn beauty of the rite. Above, the two candidates lie prostrate before the altar as the schola chanted the Litany of Supplication.

After the ceremony, the principals gathered in front of the church. From left to right: Father Simon Felix Micahlski, O.P., The Most Reverend Thomas Cajetan Kelly, O.P. Archbishop Emeritus of Louisville, Kentucky, Father Kevin John Henry Newman Stephens, O.P. and Father Michael A. Mascari, O.P., Prior Provincial.

(Trivia: In his retirement, Archbishop Kelly is in residence at Holy Trinity Parish in Louisville, Kentucky.)

The newly ordained was mobbed by Bettingers after his reception. The good Father’s godson was hoisted out of the way of trouble. We wish Father Kevin the best in his new life.

A special thanks to Br. Joseph M. Minuth, O.P. for his great images of the ceremony. See the full set of Brother Joseph’s images on his Ordination of Brothers Kevin and Simon page on Picasa.

April 10, 2008 – The Holy See announced today the appointment of Msgr. James D. Conley as auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Denver.

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Rev. Msgr. James D. Conley as auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Denver. Bishop-elect Conley, 53, is a native of Overland Park, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City, and a convert to Catholicism. He has been a Catholic for 33 years and a priest for 23 years. His most recent assignment has been as pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in the Diocese of Wichita.

Early Life and Family

Born March 19, 1955, in Kansas City, Missouri, Bishop-elect Conley is the son of Betty and the late Carl Conley, long time residents of Overland Park, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City. Bishop-elect Conley is of Wea Indian descent.

When he was 2 years old, his family moved to Denver, Colo. and then two years later moved to Arvada, Colo, where Bishop-elect Conley attended public school at Hoskinson Cottage School. The family moved back to Kansas when he was 8 years old and resided in Overland Park, where he attended public grade school and high school.

Academics and Vocation

In 1973, Bishop-elect Conley graduated from Shawnee Mission West high school in Overland Park and enrolled in the fall as a freshman at University of Kansas. He graduated in 1977 from University of Kansas with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature.

While in college, he studied in the University of Kansas’s Integrated Humanities Program, a well-known classical great books program. During his junior year, he converted to the Catholic Church on Dec. 6, 1975.

After college, Bishop-elect Conley worked on a farm in north central Kansas and traveled Europe. In 1980, he entered seminary for the Diocese of Wichita.

Welcome, Bishop-elect Conley!

Please Pray for Us

The Renovation Committee of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Westminster, Colorado has been charged with wisely applying a generous donation to the remodeling of our church building. We had hoped to complete this project by the 50th anniversary of our building's dedication in November 2009, but we are now praying for completion by early May 2010.

How to help:

+ Please pray for us

+ Send us your images of the church (pictures of baptisms and weddings)